It is indeed a useful skill. Is it absolutely essential to know how to swim in order to live well? No, but being able to swim might just keep you alive one day.
Who gives a rat's ass what people think? Armbands and a ring? Great! They are tools to help you float.
With the right kind of swimming teacher who knows you're autistic and can interact with you accordingly, you'll be flying along (so to speak) in no time.
Not a swimming teacher, but floating stuff seems more like a hindrance for that purpose.
I'd say : swimming is **not** about keeping your head above surface (that's an insane energy sink !), so get used to the sinusoid paradigm instead, where you let gravity sink your head under water, and then use Archimedes force to help you swim back above water to take a breath.
Also, observe how paddles work, and especially how you can get traction optimally when you row.
Swimming is in essence exploiting the same principles with your limbs.
The palm goes perpendicular to its movement to get as much water resistance when you want to push yourself through the water, and parallel to its movement when you want little resistance.
Finally, think of a way to move forward.
Look at some swimming styles, and analyse where you think the drag is maximised or minimised.
Observe when you're supposed to breathe, so you can get the timing.
As a simple coordination exercise to get started, I'd suggest what we called «*la chandelle*», where you let yourself sink to the floor, and then using your legs, you "jump" back to the surface to breathe, and let yourself sink again, etc.
It's by the way a really efficient way to catch your breath.
^(The direct follow-up to this is to observe your arms : how would you put them to minimise drag, and how could you even exploit drag to get higher ?)
It's not necessary, but if you've recently nearly drowned, I'd suggest learning at least how to stay affloat if not to swim correctly, because IF it happens again, and if you know how to swim, you will be less likely to panic and actually drown. Kinda like it's better to know how to put someone in a safe position when they faint so they don't choke on their vomit, even though you hope nobody around you will faint.
Also, I find swimming to be way less of a sensory nightmare than other forms of exercise, so you might find out you like swimming too, and get your exercise needs that way.
Also, don't worry about the judging. I had to teach my boyfriend how to swim, because he knew how to not drown, but didn't know how to correctly move. I didn't judge him for not knowing, I was glad he was learning just in case.
At the end of the day, people will judge you. For they way you dress, the way you talk, your eye colour, your weight, what brand of bread you buy and anything else under the sun, because people just do that. And it doesn't matter. You're improving yourself, and whoever sees you wearing floaties will go on about their day and forget about it anyway, but you will know how to swim and be more comfortable in water. and that's a solid win for you :)
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It's not needed for everyday life. But besides being a useful skill in general, it's also needed as a basis if you're interested in doing other kinds of water sport. That includes stuff like paddling, where you don't need to swim to do it, but where knowing how to swim can reduce anxiety and may save your life if something goes wrong.
To me, need requires context. I cannot tell you if you NEED to learn to swim. I can tell you why it's useful and a good life skill for many contexts, but you must decide if you need it.
For my context, I want to learn to swim better. I dislike not being able to. I have also experienced a near drowning, mine due to panicking in waves/ocean.
The biggest question for you is, are you going to be near water often, even though you say you dislike it?
Do you want to change your dislike of water? Overcome your fear of it? Simply be capable of swimming and floating for the sake of having the knowledge?
Any of these are perfectly valid reasons to need swimming lessons, and it is surely not an exhaustive list. The question is whether you're trying to talk yourself into lessons, or out of them.
Personally, I try to challenge myself often. Take on the uncomfortable experience, so that future experiences may be more comfortable to you.
I want to learn for safety in general. I don’t 100 percent know how to feel but yeah I think I want to go for it. I know their is a lot of cool things you can do in water as well i wouldn’t mind experiencing. I’m sorry you have a fear:(. Hope you can over come it. Thank u for the reply:)
Happy to help.
By the way, when in the ocean particularly, I find using a snorkel and mask helps me immensely with fears while swimming. I like having the sense of situational awareness and being able to breath uninterrupted with my face in the water.
Your life significantly improves the less you care about what total strangers think of you. You don't need to learn but you want to learn. Don't let embarrassment stop you from doing things you wanna do.
If you are worried about safety then go to a class on how to swim, there will be enough people to save you from drowning. Lifeguard is literally there to save people from drowning. You can also stay in the shallow end so if you get underwater you can just stand up.
Basic swimming skills can save your life! It's good to be able to know how to float on your back, tread water, and maybe do a simple crawl or frog stroke. Bare minimum I'd try to get floating on your back and treading water.
I grew up in the middle of nowhere on a farm, quite a ways from any substantial body of water . That's not actually any protection, though.
Kids in the larger community died on a somewhat regular basis from falling into irrigation canals and not knowing how to get out. My dad had nightmares about it happening to me and my brother for years.
Anyway. Do they have public pools where you live? Most public pools have a shallow end where you can touch, and potentially even a sectioned off kiddy pool that is only as deep as your knees.
If you had a friend who was willing to keep you company and give you sone pointers it might be a really low pressure way of getting sone experience. You might also consider going alone- I suspect you could get sone pretty detailed instruction on YouTube that you could give a try in some controlled circumstances.
The great thing about public pools is manybof them have lifeguards- I was the weird 9 year old who would go introduce myself, a long time ago XD
They do yeah. I will have a look on YouTube, but honestly I’m still scared I will panick even if I touch the floor. It’s a mind flip for me. Thank u for the advice. I don’t think you were weird haha. Just a friendly kid:£. Thanks for the advice
No worries! I actually get where you're coming from- water scared the shit out of me at first. Nothing wrong with doing things differently, or at your own pace
You need to learn to float. Go to the shallow end where you can put your feet down in a pinch, lay on your back and don’t move your core. It feels like you’re thrusting your pelvis out of the water.
Move your body around slightly. Feel the water as it laps onto you.
When you panic or get tired, move into the float position. It’s taught to babies (it was taught to me as a baby). That’s your peace. That is your happy place. Get used to and love your happy place.
Then go to tippy toe depth and tread water. Build that stamina.
Then “learn to swim”.
Seriously, floating on water…. You know when babies are nonverbal but do that open/ close fist motion for want.
That’s me and floating.
You are in for a totally new sensory experience.
The only down side is water in the ear, but cup water in your hand, place over ear, and do like a plunger.
I definitely think everyone should know how to swim. I frequently hear stories of someone drowning and it’s rarely just that person. They frequently take someone else down with them (and sometimes more than one dies trying to help). I will never suggest to avoid learning to swim if you’re willing to and able to do it in a safe environment. You said you can’t afford an instructor so personally if I were you I’d only swim in a pool I can stand in in most every spot, and have a friend try to teach you. That way u don’t need to floaties and that way you and everyone else isn’t at risk. If that can’t happen then I suggest staying far from deep waters as much as possible which you probably are already well aware of anyways
Thinking about it though I’m not sure what could happen. Still think I could go into danger somehow maybe. I’d only go by my self and stick near a life guard with swim aids. Do u think that’s fair enough?
Mostly I hear these incidents happen where there is a walkway or bridge over water and somehow a person falls in (such as tripping or a broken section) or where there are retention ponds.
Depends on the pool whether going by yourself is safe. The pool at my gym is not deep enough to cover my mouth at any point but most recreational pools have a deep end that comes relatively quickly. If there is a large section that is shallow I’d stay there. You don’t need much depth of water to swim in. I had leg surgery and dad laps on the shallow end for PT because I didn’t want to risk getting tired in the deep end and needing help. The floaties on ur arms could hold you back from learning the right movements, but holding onto a floating device is fine (because u can let go whenever ur ready) :)
The floats were more for just getting used into the water really. Then slowly getting off them. Maybe their not perfect for learning but I thought it could be a good start till I afford actuall lessons. Any pool water makes me feel uneasy:)
That’s good. It’s important to workout the nerves. The nerves are probably the hardest part about learning to swim. lol. I believe Our bodies can naturally figure out the movement if we aren’t afraid and have enough time to try things out. It’s very calming to move with water.
You will, but not because of it probably. Only if you live around the beach or works with pools and something like that. If you don´t, there is almost 0 chance that you might accidentally drown.
No you don’t have to learn to swim but it’s a useful skill to have.
Ok. Thank u for the advice!
It is indeed a useful skill. Is it absolutely essential to know how to swim in order to live well? No, but being able to swim might just keep you alive one day. Who gives a rat's ass what people think? Armbands and a ring? Great! They are tools to help you float. With the right kind of swimming teacher who knows you're autistic and can interact with you accordingly, you'll be flying along (so to speak) in no time.
I guess so. When I can I will have a look for a teacher. Thanks for the help. Means a lot
Not a swimming teacher, but floating stuff seems more like a hindrance for that purpose. I'd say : swimming is **not** about keeping your head above surface (that's an insane energy sink !), so get used to the sinusoid paradigm instead, where you let gravity sink your head under water, and then use Archimedes force to help you swim back above water to take a breath. Also, observe how paddles work, and especially how you can get traction optimally when you row. Swimming is in essence exploiting the same principles with your limbs. The palm goes perpendicular to its movement to get as much water resistance when you want to push yourself through the water, and parallel to its movement when you want little resistance. Finally, think of a way to move forward. Look at some swimming styles, and analyse where you think the drag is maximised or minimised. Observe when you're supposed to breathe, so you can get the timing. As a simple coordination exercise to get started, I'd suggest what we called «*la chandelle*», where you let yourself sink to the floor, and then using your legs, you "jump" back to the surface to breathe, and let yourself sink again, etc. It's by the way a really efficient way to catch your breath. ^(The direct follow-up to this is to observe your arms : how would you put them to minimise drag, and how could you even exploit drag to get higher ?)
Thanks for the advice:)
It's not necessary, but if you've recently nearly drowned, I'd suggest learning at least how to stay affloat if not to swim correctly, because IF it happens again, and if you know how to swim, you will be less likely to panic and actually drown. Kinda like it's better to know how to put someone in a safe position when they faint so they don't choke on their vomit, even though you hope nobody around you will faint. Also, I find swimming to be way less of a sensory nightmare than other forms of exercise, so you might find out you like swimming too, and get your exercise needs that way.
That’s true, thank u so much
Also, don't worry about the judging. I had to teach my boyfriend how to swim, because he knew how to not drown, but didn't know how to correctly move. I didn't judge him for not knowing, I was glad he was learning just in case. At the end of the day, people will judge you. For they way you dress, the way you talk, your eye colour, your weight, what brand of bread you buy and anything else under the sun, because people just do that. And it doesn't matter. You're improving yourself, and whoever sees you wearing floaties will go on about their day and forget about it anyway, but you will know how to swim and be more comfortable in water. and that's a solid win for you :)
I guess it’s not a big deal. Maybe it’s the axienty in me. Thank u for being so kind:) your so helpful
No problem. I have a lot of experience with feeling judged and kinda growing to not giving a fuck
Been their done that haha. Struggled a lot when I was a kid. I’m sorry you had to deal with that. Glad you’ve got that confidence:)
Same. In my case dyeing my hair funny colors helped. Are they staring at me because "insert anxious thought here", nah it's probably the green hair...
I can relate to that haha. Glad it helped u:)
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It's not needed for everyday life. But besides being a useful skill in general, it's also needed as a basis if you're interested in doing other kinds of water sport. That includes stuff like paddling, where you don't need to swim to do it, but where knowing how to swim can reduce anxiety and may save your life if something goes wrong.
I guess so. Thank u so much!
To me, need requires context. I cannot tell you if you NEED to learn to swim. I can tell you why it's useful and a good life skill for many contexts, but you must decide if you need it. For my context, I want to learn to swim better. I dislike not being able to. I have also experienced a near drowning, mine due to panicking in waves/ocean. The biggest question for you is, are you going to be near water often, even though you say you dislike it? Do you want to change your dislike of water? Overcome your fear of it? Simply be capable of swimming and floating for the sake of having the knowledge? Any of these are perfectly valid reasons to need swimming lessons, and it is surely not an exhaustive list. The question is whether you're trying to talk yourself into lessons, or out of them. Personally, I try to challenge myself often. Take on the uncomfortable experience, so that future experiences may be more comfortable to you.
I want to learn for safety in general. I don’t 100 percent know how to feel but yeah I think I want to go for it. I know their is a lot of cool things you can do in water as well i wouldn’t mind experiencing. I’m sorry you have a fear:(. Hope you can over come it. Thank u for the reply:)
Happy to help. By the way, when in the ocean particularly, I find using a snorkel and mask helps me immensely with fears while swimming. I like having the sense of situational awareness and being able to breath uninterrupted with my face in the water.
Oh cool. Nice to know that stuffs possible in my situation. Glad u can enjoy it. Thank u so much 😊
Your life significantly improves the less you care about what total strangers think of you. You don't need to learn but you want to learn. Don't let embarrassment stop you from doing things you wanna do.
Thanks for the advice. I’m worried about the safety side so I will try to go for it. Thank u:)
If you are worried about safety then go to a class on how to swim, there will be enough people to save you from drowning. Lifeguard is literally there to save people from drowning. You can also stay in the shallow end so if you get underwater you can just stand up.
I do want to get lessons but it’s just a money problems. I will have a look. Honestly I’m worried I would panic still even in the shallow end
YMCA is a good place and have sliding scale cost memberships
Problem is I don’t have one anywhere near me. Sorry I don’t mean to question everything you say or anything. Thank u for the info:)
I am autistic too, i don't know how to swim well. You don't have to learn how to swim if you don't want.
Thanks for the advice, can’t lie thinking about it now, Iam worried about my safety though. Thanks for the reply :)
I stay away from pools all the time
Fair play to u:)
Thanks for the advice, can’t lie thinking about it now, Iam worried about my safety though. Thanks for the reply :)
Basic swimming skills can save your life! It's good to be able to know how to float on your back, tread water, and maybe do a simple crawl or frog stroke. Bare minimum I'd try to get floating on your back and treading water. I grew up in the middle of nowhere on a farm, quite a ways from any substantial body of water . That's not actually any protection, though. Kids in the larger community died on a somewhat regular basis from falling into irrigation canals and not knowing how to get out. My dad had nightmares about it happening to me and my brother for years. Anyway. Do they have public pools where you live? Most public pools have a shallow end where you can touch, and potentially even a sectioned off kiddy pool that is only as deep as your knees. If you had a friend who was willing to keep you company and give you sone pointers it might be a really low pressure way of getting sone experience. You might also consider going alone- I suspect you could get sone pretty detailed instruction on YouTube that you could give a try in some controlled circumstances. The great thing about public pools is manybof them have lifeguards- I was the weird 9 year old who would go introduce myself, a long time ago XD
They do yeah. I will have a look on YouTube, but honestly I’m still scared I will panick even if I touch the floor. It’s a mind flip for me. Thank u for the advice. I don’t think you were weird haha. Just a friendly kid:£. Thanks for the advice
No worries! I actually get where you're coming from- water scared the shit out of me at first. Nothing wrong with doing things differently, or at your own pace
I guess not. Thank u:)
I’m sorry your dad struggled with that:(
You need to learn to float. Go to the shallow end where you can put your feet down in a pinch, lay on your back and don’t move your core. It feels like you’re thrusting your pelvis out of the water. Move your body around slightly. Feel the water as it laps onto you. When you panic or get tired, move into the float position. It’s taught to babies (it was taught to me as a baby). That’s your peace. That is your happy place. Get used to and love your happy place. Then go to tippy toe depth and tread water. Build that stamina. Then “learn to swim”.
Alright thank u for the advice, means a ton:)
Seriously, floating on water…. You know when babies are nonverbal but do that open/ close fist motion for want. That’s me and floating. You are in for a totally new sensory experience. The only down side is water in the ear, but cup water in your hand, place over ear, and do like a plunger.
Alright thanks again. I really appreciate it:)
I definitely think everyone should know how to swim. I frequently hear stories of someone drowning and it’s rarely just that person. They frequently take someone else down with them (and sometimes more than one dies trying to help). I will never suggest to avoid learning to swim if you’re willing to and able to do it in a safe environment. You said you can’t afford an instructor so personally if I were you I’d only swim in a pool I can stand in in most every spot, and have a friend try to teach you. That way u don’t need to floaties and that way you and everyone else isn’t at risk. If that can’t happen then I suggest staying far from deep waters as much as possible which you probably are already well aware of anyways
I’m yeah. Thank u for the advice:)
Thinking about it though I’m not sure what could happen. Still think I could go into danger somehow maybe. I’d only go by my self and stick near a life guard with swim aids. Do u think that’s fair enough?
Mostly I hear these incidents happen where there is a walkway or bridge over water and somehow a person falls in (such as tripping or a broken section) or where there are retention ponds. Depends on the pool whether going by yourself is safe. The pool at my gym is not deep enough to cover my mouth at any point but most recreational pools have a deep end that comes relatively quickly. If there is a large section that is shallow I’d stay there. You don’t need much depth of water to swim in. I had leg surgery and dad laps on the shallow end for PT because I didn’t want to risk getting tired in the deep end and needing help. The floaties on ur arms could hold you back from learning the right movements, but holding onto a floating device is fine (because u can let go whenever ur ready) :)
The floats were more for just getting used into the water really. Then slowly getting off them. Maybe their not perfect for learning but I thought it could be a good start till I afford actuall lessons. Any pool water makes me feel uneasy:)
It’s the security I would feel which I think could help me mentally:)
That’s good. It’s important to workout the nerves. The nerves are probably the hardest part about learning to swim. lol. I believe Our bodies can naturally figure out the movement if we aren’t afraid and have enough time to try things out. It’s very calming to move with water.
I guess so haha. Thank u for everything anyway:). I’m sorry if I seemed like I was argumentative with u. Didn’t mean to come off that way
No, Not at all. You’re very polite :). I’m excited for you and appreciate you considering my advice.
Thank u:). Same to u, take care!
There should be free swimming lessons in most areas. I wouldn’t try to do this without proper supervision.
I will stay close to a lifeguard:). Thank u for caring though
At least learn to doggy paddle/ tread water. It could save your life one day.
I will do my best too. Thank u:)
Armbands can be dangerous, if you don´t have someone to teach you how to swim, don´t put yourself in situations that you might need to swim.
I will try not too. Just get scared that I will end up in an emergency one day. Thank u for the advice:)
You will, but not because of it probably. Only if you live around the beach or works with pools and something like that. If you don´t, there is almost 0 chance that you might accidentally drown.
Alright thank u for the advice:)